Making a Lightsaber
by Angel Kamiya
Summary: Darth Vader has never failed any missions, but for the first time all that might change when he meets a very special guest.
1. Vader's Very Very Unusual Mission

Standard Disclaimer: I don't own StarWars. I'm just writing stories for fun so I'm making no profit from this story.  
A/N: Please review. This story contains lots of humor and even a bit of action. I've tried to make sure the story fits perfectly into the Star Wars universe, but if something doesn't make sense then you might want to point them out in the reviews section. Enjoy!

Author: Angel Kamiya

Making a Lightsaber

Chapter One

Lord Darth Vader looked out of the window of his Star Destroyer. He mentally smiled realizing that the Jedi would pay for all they had done to him. The Emperor had recently started construction of these new and deadly ships for the new order. Walking away from the main window on the bridge he started to walk to his chambers. His Emperor had wished for him to send him a report on the progress on the extermination of the Jedi Knights. It had become a tiring task searching through nearly the entire galaxy for the Jedi but he knew they were no match for the Dark Side of the force.

The only other thing on his mind was his next possible rival Xizor, the Dark Prince and Underlord of Black Sun. Xizor was a Falleen, a species who was reptilian in ancestry. The Dark Prince was also one of the few people that could even rival the influence that the Emperor and Lord Vader himself possessed. He was a constant annoyance that Vader could not take care of personally without facing the Empeor's disapproval. The Emperor often made him and Xizor compete against each other for his favor. Something the Sith Lord hated.

Out of nowhere a man dressed in an Admiral's uniform bumped into him. The officer looked up fearfully at the Sith Lord and started shaking very visibly. Vader disliked anyone who failed him and the man before him had done so several times in the past. The Sith Lord knew he had a terrible temper whenever someone failed him. Moving his right hand forward he grabbed the officer by the throat. When the Emperor had given Vader command of the Imperial Fleet he was also given the powers to promote and demote officers. All the officers around them stopped then quickly got back to what they were doing.

"If the Emperor wasn't on the comlink then you would dead…" he said coldly.

With that he pushed the officer forward and continued to his chambers. He had no time to deal with these fools and had an assignment to complete. Even though he didn't take failures lightly, his duty was more important then correcting mistakes.

As he entered his chambers he saw the hologram in the center of the room. The Sith Lord went down and rested on his right knee looking up at the image of Emperor Palpatine. The ruler was wearing a dark cloak and his skin was badly damaged with many scars. A result of the duel between him and a Jedi Master.

"What is thy bidding my master?" he asked.

"Your task has gone well I see, but there is something more important for you to do now. It doesn't require you to hunt any Jedi Knights but you will find this task most interesting."

"What do you mean?" Vader asked, puzzled. He stared at the hologram trying to sense his master intent, but only failed.

"Turn your fleet around and come back to Coruscant. I shall be waiting for you in my chambers."

With that the link ended before he could respond.

Vader unhooked his lightsaber that he had carried with him for the past week. The saber was metallic colored and had a few knobs on the top to change the length of the blade if it became necessary. His original lightsaber with the red blade had been badly damaged in a duel with another Jedi very recently so he had been forced to build a temporary replacement until he could make another Sith Lightsaber back on Coruscant. Pushing a button it ignited and a blue blade appeared before him. It was a color that was used by the Jedi. There was a low hum and a bluish glow in the dark room. Vader twirled the blade to his side and then he returned to a dueling stance. Turning the ancient weapon off he walked out of his mediating chambers. His master's ability too see into the future had restored the Sith to power. The emperor now wanted him to do something and he would do it.

The streets of Coruscant were filled with lots of guards. This was mainly since the Emperor had decided they would be needed. Vader walked to the Imperial Palace alone unescorted. He preferred not to have any bodyguards at all. It was cowardly to hide behind a man and he would have rather fought his enemies alone. The complete destruction of the Jedi order was such a waste. Yet he knew that it had to be done for the good of the Empire.

Walking out of the elevator he noticed the Royal Guards by his side. They were considered the best of the best, yet he considered battling one to test their skills. Even though he was a powerful Sith he did not underestimate his enemies. The Emperor's throne room was one of the greatest chambers in the galaxy. The Emperor himself sat on a simple chair waiting for him in the middle room. He had a grin on his face that made even Vader shudder.

"What is it that you want me to do?" Vader asked, without a hint of emotion in his voice.

Suddenly a small girl about the age of six walked out from behind the emperor's chair. She had red golden hair that was unusually short for a girl her age. It was untidy but also in a unique style. The girl had green eyes which matched the color of her dress. There was an innocent expression on her face that suddenly reminded him of himself when he was a child. She was very cute. Amazingly the force was very strong in her; it would be very easy to corrupt her to the dark side if necessary. Why would a small girl be here in the Emperor's throne room? There had to be a reason why she was here.

"I see that you are curious about the identity of this girl…" smiled Palpatine.

"Yes…"

"I will have to leave the planet for a few days to conduct some _personal_ business..." He started.

Vader knew what his master was talking about. He was referring to the new cloning facilities that was being constructed at the secret location. The Sith Lord had spies that were among the best in the galaxy, they rivaled that of Black Sun's. Yet he had never revealed this to his master.

"I want you to do this small task." Continued the Emperor. "Look after my Hand… I mean this young one for the duration that I am gone. You see you are the only one that I completely trust at this time."

Darth Vader was shocked. How could the Emperor ask this from him, it was inconceivable! Why would he ask a Sith Lord to baby-sit? Before he could say anything his master got up and walked to the elevator. Before he left he said one last thing.

"Oh and make sure she doesn't get into any trouble my friend…"

With his last words the Emperor was gone and along with the Royal guards, Vader was left alone with the little girl. He had no idea what to do next.

to be continued…


	2. The Annoying And Evil Girl Arrives

Standard Disclaimer: I don't own StarWars. I'm just writing stories for fun so I'm making no profit from this story.  
A/N: Please review.  
Author: Angel Kamiya

Making a Lightsaber

Chapter Two

The Imperial throne room was completely vacant except for Darth Vader and the mysterious little girl. The girl looked about six standard years old. At that moment he wished that he was fighting a dozen Jedi Knights then face the task that he had been forced to endure. The Emperor did not take failures lightly. When his master had left a moment ago Vader could have sworn that there was a threat in his last comment. Taking a deep breath Darth Vader walked forward trying not to look threatening. He wanted to walk normally like he always did but it would not serve him well at this moment. The girl stood still but it was apparent that she was beyond nervous.

"What is your name?" he asked.

"I don't know…" she replied softy. "Pine never wants me to talk to anyone…"

Darth Vader barely stopped himself from laughing. The emperor made it a rule that all of his servants had to have the certain amount of education. He had said that knowledge was more powerful then any weapon ever constructed. Vader agreed with him.

"What was your name before you met my emperor?" he asked again.

"Mara"

"Very well. I want you to come here, Mara."

The girl hesitated, almost to consider what he had asked, then ran at where he stood. She ran full force into the tall man and fell to the ground. Although the throne room was always clean and constantly monitored she looked odd for some reason. Looking at her a little more closely he saw that her face was covered with dust. Darth Vader mentally frowned; he would not be seen with a dirty child. Reaching his hand down he pulled her back to her feet. He had a sudden thought that Padme would have immediately adopted the girl on the spot since they never had children. The little girl looked very unhappy.

"How long have you been with the Emperor?" he asked.

"I don't know. I… I miss my mommy and daddy."

Mara couldn't help but cry when she said her parents. It had been hadn't been too long ago yet she still couldn't remember what happened to them. She felt like a very bad person since she had already forgotten so many things.

"Can we go outside…" then she stopped. "Ani?"

Vader was momentarily surprised at what she just called him. For a second he had totally forgotten that she was strong with the force. Realizing this he put up his mental barriers.

"Don't call me by that name again… Call me Darth."

"Oh… Sorry Darth…"

The girl looked up at the man that was suddenly eyeing her. She didn't know why Pine was gone and why she had been left with Anakin. The assistant usually took care of her but she was on some kind of vacation.

"You must take a bath before you can go outside…" he explained.

Mara's eyes lit up with fright suddenly forgetting that she had been thinking of. This wasn't happening it had to be a nightmare!

"NO!" she yelled. "NO I WONT! You can't make me!"

"You will come with me whether you like it or not."

The young girl with the red hair started walking backwards and tripped and fell to the ground again. She got up and stuck out her tongue. Darth Vader narrowed his eyes walked slowly forward. For a girl she sure fell a lot. He hoped that wouldn't be the case when she grew older. The Sith Lord reached a hand forward and with the force she suddenly stumbled forward.

"Hey! That's cheating!"

Vader grabbed her by the arms before she could escape.

"You're coming with me little girl!"

"Nooo! I want to play with my pretend lightsaber!"

Mara grabbed the lightsaber on Vader's belt and moved back. It ignited and a blue light along with a low hum suddenly filled the room. She swung it wildly and the blade almost cut Vader in half. With Jedi reflexives he managed to dodge the weapon.

"Give me that!" Vader yelled.

"I'm a Jedi you can't make me take a bath!" she laughed.

Swing it in a full circle she sliced through a thick pillar near the wall and smoke filled the room. With that the Emperor's alarms went off indicating that there had been an attack on the Emperor. Using the distraction the Dark Lord grabbed the saber from the girl and deactivated it. Hooking it back on his belt he clenched his fist.

"This is NOT a toy!" Vader roared.

"Uh-oh…. Am I going to get into trouble for this?" she inquired, pointing to the damaged pillar.

The Royal Guards charged into the room and assumed that Vader had tried to assassinate their emperor. All six of them ran at Vader with their spear-like weapons. The Sith Lord pushed with the force and they slammed backward into the wall. He realized the ground they were on was shaking. The entire support system for the suite was going to collapse in a matter of seconds!

Sensing the danger Vader grabbed Mara and, throwing her over his shoulders, he ran out of the room with Jedi speed just before it collapsed. He stared down at her suddenly very angry.

Vader's suite was the largest room Vader had ever sat his foot on, besides that of the now damaged chambers of the emperor. There were priceless paintings on the wall and one of the kind statues near the window. He shuddered realizing what the emperor was going to do with him if he didn't get his chambers fixed in time. 

"I'll be good! I'll be good! Just don't make me take a bath!" she pleaded.

"You will not escape this time!"

The two of them walked into the washing room also commonly called the fresher. He rarely used the bath and instead used the shower. The bathtub was larger then some public streets, yet it could be filled with warm water in an instant. Mara hated having to take ten baths in a single day just to look clean; it wasn't fun at all. Then she suddenly had a plan.

"The emperor doesn't like me taking baths without soap!"

"Stay here," he ordered.

Walking out of the room, Darth Vader took out his comlink and tried to contact a few people. He was desperate and wanted to be anywhere else. After contacting about a dozen people he threw the comlink to the ground in disgust. Walking around the room for a few moments he calmed down.

"I will do this for the emperor…"

Walking back into the room he couldn't feel her through the force, she was gone. He let out a yell and dropped what he was caring. The soap and towels fell to the ground. Rushing out of the suite he looked for where she could have went. Seeing a Royal Guard he walked to where the guard stood.

"Where did she go?" he asked.

The guard dressed in red robes remained silent. They would only speak to the emperor. Lord Vader spun around and started his patrol. If the emperor found out that he had lost the child then he would suffer the consequences. Looking down he finally saw what had happened.

"That THIEF! She STOLE my lightsaber!"

Mara walked through the streets of Coruscant glad to get out of the palace. The speeders above her head bolted pass her overhead. She smiled knowing that she could be at her hiding place for at least tonight. Walking into alley she looked for her hiding spot. After some searching she found it and sighed with relief.

Making her way past the abandoned driods she crawled into a small alcove on the wall. Folding her arms forward she lay down and began to sleep. She felt a lot safer sleeping here then back at the palace. Hugging the lightsaber she started to fall asleep.

The general walked to Vader with the latest reports on his datapad.

"This damage to the emperor's chambers is _extensive_. It will be almost impossible to repair." Declared the officer.

The Sith Lord took the datapad from him and studied the damage caused by the innocent little girl. He threw it back at the messenger suddenly too tired to be mad. It would cost nearly a million credits to rebuild what had been destroyed in a matter of seconds. He couldn't understand why one girl was more destructive then him!

"Do what you can general. I will fund this project with my own credits." Responded Vader.

The official nodded and left Vader's chambers. Closing his eyes he stretched out with the force to see where the girl had went. Finding her he knew that she was safe for now. Cutting off the force link he replayed the holovid of what she had just destroyed. Something even the Rebellion wasn't capable of masterminding themselves. He knew that he could get into a lot of trouble now that the emperor's chambers were destroyed and Mara currently missing.

"The Emperor is going to kill me…" Vader muttered.

to be continued…


	3. Fights And More Fights

Standard Disclaimer: I don't own StarWars. I'm just writing stories for fun so I'm making no profit from this story.  
A/N: Please review.  
Author: Angel Kamiya 

Making a Lightsaber

Chapter Three

The hologram of the Emperor was very clear as it was projected in front of him. Darth Vader wondered if the emperor had returned to Imperial City and for a brief moment smiled. Returning his attention to his master before him he bowed his head. Looking down on the emperor was one of the strangest things Vader had ever experienced.

"How goes your task?" asked Palpatine.

"She… is alive…" he replied.

The emperor laughed which sent a chill through his body.

"Good my friend. I shall be back later tonight."

With that the transmission ended leaving Darth Vader alone in his chambers. He had been awake for hours now mediating and practicing the different techniques from the book. Not able to concentrate he got back up annoyed that the girl still hadn't awakened yet. It had taken several hours for his assistants to find her but by sheer luck they succeeded somehow.

"Time to eat…"

Getting up he walked to her room.

As the light from the outside hit her eyes Mara woke up. After stretching she suddenly remembered that she still held onto Anakin's lightsaber and smiled. She had won that battle at least when she was returned to the palace last night. Getting up she made a face at her Ewok pajamas and nearly took them off. A simple necklace caught her attention.

"Pretty…"

Forgetting her clothes she grabbed the chain necklace from the table beside her bed. Putting the chain through the saber's belt ring she snapped it shut. Then she put it around her neck like a necklace with the lightsaber handle as a charm. It felt a little odd with it's weight but at least she wouldn't be losing it anytime soon.

"Maybe just a little more sleep."

Mara climbed back into bed and pulled the covers over her.

The Sith Lord reached her quarters and went for the door. He frowned when he realized that it was locked. This was bad, this was very bad.

Mara heard the knock on the door and made a face. She needed some more of her beauty sleep! Pulling the covers over her head she tried to get back to sleep. No one was going to tell her what to do! Vader was getting impatience. With the force he knew she was awake and fully aware of his presence. There was only one obvious reason why she hadn't opened the door. She was ignoring him… again.

"Open up!" he yelled.

"Go away!" She replied.

"This is Darth and I want you to open this door right _now_!"

"No way! I don't want to!"

It was happening again.

With the force Darth Vader opened the door from the inside. It slid open with a small sound getting Mara's attention. Mara made a face of disgust and threw her pillow at him; it was easily deflected. Though she did look cute with those Ewok pajamas.

"Hey you can't come in here!"

"I do what I _want_ little girl."

"Pine is going to be so mad at you!"

"I don't think so."

Vader grabbed her gently before she could escape. Out of nowhere she slammed her foot down hard onto his foot. The Sith Lord yelled out in pain and hopped around the room suddenly holding his foot. The voice of the man echoed through hallways.

"Why you _little_ Jawa!" he yelled.

Mara ran out of the room laughing crazily. Her pajamas still on along with her socks. As the pain left, Vader narrowed his eyes suddenly consumed with rage finally finding his balance again. He turned toward the exit and began the silent chase.

"I will not kill… I will not kill… I will not kill…"

Being as hungry as she was Mara ran into the kitchen giggling with happiness. A loaf of meat caught her attention and she suddenly had a wicked idea. Taking out Anakin's lightsaber she ignited it and a humming sound filled the room along with a bluish glow.

The Sith Lord walked up to the dining room and stared in horror. She was slicing his entire kitchen in half! With the force she was pulled back, and the lighsaber was suddenly deactivated. Vader looked at her waiting for an explanation. The little girl was starting to destroy everything in sight.

"I guess I should have used a normal knife huh?" she smiled.

"Sit down now!"

Mara looked up at Anakin suddenly frozen. Without warning she burst out crying. A screeching sound filled the room. Vader thought his ears would explode.

"No… Don't cry." Vader pleaded. "What do you want?"

"I want… I want Pine back! You don't let me do anything! I want some candy!"

Vader ignored her since he would not give in to her. She had destroyed millions of credits worth of property and now wanted treats! No he would not give her any sweets. The emperor would be most displeased if she suddenly became the size of a Hutt.

"No!" Vader yelled.

"Oh Yeah?!"

Mara ran out of the room thus making the Sith Lord even more agitated. The girl was already out of the suite and was now in the hallway.

"Why? Why did it have to be me?"

Waking through the hallways Darth Vader stretched with the force and knew she was nearby. He didn't want to play hide and seek. He was really beginning to hate his job as a Sith Lord. Upon hearing a couple of lightsaber swings he walked to his training room. Who had turned on his personal driod?

As he entered the room his eyes widened. She was fighting with his battle driod! Her blue blade met with the driod's violet one and sent sparks flying. For a moment he just stared blankly at the battle before him amazed. Mara was pretty good.

"Get away from that!" Vader yelled.

With the force the saber flew into this hands.

"I was having fun!" Mara whined.

"This is not a game!" he shouted.

Taking his attention off the battle driod for a few moments, he completely forgot that it was still on. The driod swung forward and it was suddenly blocked. Vader returned his attention back to the killer driod and went on the offensive. With every swing he drove the driod back in retreat. With a final swing he decapitated the driod's head. The driod fell to the ground and died.

"Can we do that again?" she pointed to the driod. "That was so cool…"

"No we can't do that again!"

Vader fell to his knees and suddenly let out a loud yell that could be heard several rooms back. Later a storm trooper would tell his commander that he had gotten very scared. After a few moments of venting his anger Vader got back up and clamed his breathing. He would not give up.

"Aren't you overreacting?" she smiled.

Darth Vader hated this. He really hated this.

to be continued…


	4. Vader Is Never Happy When Wet

Standard Disclaimer: I don't own StarWars. I'm just writing stories for fun so I'm making no profit from this story.  
A/N: Please review.  
Author: Angel Kamiya

Making a Lightsaber

Chapter Four

Darth Vader faced the sentry guns with his lightsaber ignited. He wasn't even sweating as he called upon the force for it's many gifts. At that instant three concealed panels in front of him opened and revealed the dangerous blaster cannons. They fired and the Sith Lord put his entire trust into the force which automatically guided his hands to defect the lethal blasts. The blasts returned and destroyed two of the guns.

He threw his saber while moving backward, still keeping it lit with the force, at his last threat. The still ignited saber slashed the last target destroying it. The saber flew back into his hands and deactivated. He looked at the mess and frowned. This was getting too easy, he would have to tell the technicians to add more guns later in the day. Turning around he hooked the saber back onto his belt. He had another opponent that was far more dangerous awaiting him. Taking a deep breath he walked to the dining hall.

The dining hall itself was one of the largest and most spectacular sights on Coruscant. It was miles long and a grand table sat in the center of the room. The room was vacant except for one person, a little girl with short red hair. It was time for breakfast and he had just completed his training exercise. Darth Vader was afraid as he walked to her, he was very afraid.

"Yeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! Finally something to eat!" she squealed loudly.

Mara literally threw the food into her mouth without really caring what she was eating. She was hungry and wanted anything that could be eaten in her stomach. She loved eating.

"Hurry up." Vader said impatiently. "I sense someone coming!"

The girl stopped for just a moment and looked at him. Then she quickly returned to eating. Vader couldn't believe that someone as small as her could eat like a Hutt. The food bill was going to cost him all the credits he had!

"I said hurry up!"

The Sith Lord got up and grabbed her arm gently and yanked her away from the food. She squealed, screamed and kicked so loudly the guards outside thought someone was being killed. Mara's short red hair covered her face hiding it from view.

"Nooooooooooo! I haven't gotten any desert yet!" she whined.

"I don't care!, You stole my saber and the least you could do is obey me!" Vader roared.

At that moment a lone trooper entered the room to see what had caused the noise. Vader immediately moved his hands forward and made a gesture. The trooper flew into air and slammed into the ceiling, he fell down and hit the ground face first. The Sith Lord smiled finally something to hone his rage on. The trooper got back up and ran out of the room.

"Do that again!' Mara yelled. "Teach me how to do that!"

Vader rolled his eyes.

The Sith Lord looked at the little girl and frowned. This would not be another situation like before. He had no idea where she was always getting herself dirty.

"Change into something different," he ordered. "And brush your hair."

Mara looked up at him stared at him with her light green eyes. She made a face and started walking back.

"I'm telling you to get dressed now!"

"I can't go like this?" Mara looked down at her Ewok pajamas. "I don't want to get dressed!"

"That's it little girl! You have been very naughty!"

With the force, Vader mentally turned on the water in the bathing room. He picked her up and carried her to the refresher. She struggled, squealed, and kicked loudly. This time none of the stormtroopers came to see who was doing the yelling.

"I will give you a bath as punishment! This time you won't escape…" Vader muttered.

"Nooooooo!" yelled Mara.

The water was already on and the tub was filled with warm water. Vader was horrified that the ground had been flooded with water. Moving through the mess he tried very hard not to trip and fall. The lights in the room were broken for some reason. He knew who had probably broken them in the first place.

"Get in there!" Vader pointed at the tub.

Mara looked at the pool of water and froze. Getting out of his hold she ran to the door and realized it was locked. She grabbed the saber around her head and before she could turn it on Vader grabbed it from her. She let out a loud noise.

"I'm not going in that!"

Not listening Vader picked the girl up and dropped her into it. There was a splash of water that flew out. The girl was drenched with warm water along with her clothes.

"Hey!" she yelled.

Mara moved forward and pulled Vader in with her. The ground was so slippery she succeeded and the Sith Lord fell in. The little girl laughed seeing as how she got her revenge. She jumped out of the pool of water and ran outside still completely wet. She was laughing very hard.

"Ahhhhhhhh!" shouted Vader.

The Sith Lord couldn't swim and rushed to get to the surface with the force. Crawling from the side of the pool he pulled himself out completely wet. He had a really bad headache. She had almost killed him… again.

"You little Jawa! You almost drowned me!"

Vader found himself walking outside searching for Mara Jade once again. He wondered how another person might have dealt with Mara. Stretching out with the force he knew that she was close by. He would find her then maybe sell her. Getting punished by the Emperor didn't seem as frightening as spending the next few days watching the girl. Then Vader's comlink rang and he put it to his ears.

"What?"

"Lord Vader… The shuttle that you requested that we monitor has finally arrived at the main spaceport. Is there anything else you want us to do?" asked a young man's voice.

"No, I will deal with the Prince myself"

Mara ran through the streets still in her wet clothing and wet hair. The people looked at her like she was some kind of lunatic. Yet she didn't really care. Not really watching where she was going, she ran right into a girl about her age. The both of them crashed onto the hard pavement.

Rubbing her eyes clear she looked at who she had ran into.

"Hi...." greeted Mara.

The girl that she had bumped into wore a long flowing white robe and a small crown on her head. Mara was a little jealous how perfectly the other girl's hair seemed to be compared to hers as it flowed in the light breeze. The girl got up and brushed off the dust from her robes. She wiped the long hair that had hidden her face away so she could see better. She looked like he had been in school for way too long. The two young children looked into each other eyes. 

"Oh... No. My dress. Who do you think you are running around like that?!" the stranger muttered, obviously angry.

"My name is Mara!" she sneered back.

"Well… You should treat a princess with more respect." the other girl replied.

The comlink that Vader carried on his belt rang for the second time and he answered it again. Who else would be calling at this time? Not really caring or wanting to care he picked it up. He stood in front of a diner on the street. He noticed that everyone else had given him a considerable amount of room.

"Sir… We have a problem… The kitchen that you told us to fix in your chambers had just blown up."

Vader's eyes widen.

"What?!"

to be continued…


	5. Another Cute Girl Shows Up

Standard Disclaimer: I don't own StarWars. I'm just writing stories for fun so I'm making no profit from this story.  
A/N: Please review.  
Author: Angel Kamiya

Making a Lightsaber

Chapter Five

Darth Vader looked down at his reflection in the water. Fountains in Imperial City were very rare and for that reason were kept away from the public. The Emperor's suite around him was almost completely rebuilt but not quite. Fortunately he had ordered all the construction crews on the planet to help rebuild the chambers to what it had been like before it had collapsed. It was almost done. His aids still hadn't found her and it was getting dark, as sunset was just minutes away. The face staring back at him was the face of a man that had been through countless nights of dark side training. Yet he was nothing but the emperor's pawn that also happened to be the supreme commander of the Imperial fleet. Over the last few days the emperor had forced him to do something worst the eliminating the Jedi order, it was taking care of Mara Jade. The name made him shiver in fright.

"Sir?"

Turing around, Vader stood to his full height and stared at the young messenger. He knew it was about Mara, but he nevertheless wanted to hear it for himself. The officer was visibly shaking even though Vader was unarmed.

"What is it?"

"Scanners have found the young girl. She is just a few blocks away."

"Thank you lieutenant" Vader smiled. "I will get her myself."

The emperor was going to be back in a matter of hours. The emperor would kill him if he knew he didn't not find Mara quickly. Taking a deep breath he walked out of suite, time was not on his side.

As night fell, two young kids sat at the side of the road admiring the sight before them. Mara hadn't been around someone her age for a very long time and the girl she was talking to was fun to talk to. A few minutes after their meeting she had asked the girl who was named Leia so many questions. They both had something in common as they didn't see kids their age practically anywhere on the planet. Leia's dad was part of the government of some planet that Mara couldn't pronounce. As another young lady neither of them knew left the store she turned to face Leia.

"Right?" asked Mara.

"Yep" replied Leia.

The dresses in the store were all stunning as they stared at them.

"So how old are you again?" asked Mara. "I'm six, almost seven!"

"I turned nine a while ago."

"Want to race?" inquired Mara. "I'll beat you!"

The girl with the brown hair got to her feet and looked around her as if to see no one was watching. Not a single stormtrooper or droid was near them so she just smiled. Leia clapped her hand happily as if trying to say something. Then she seem to clam herself and the princess sat down again. Mara saw the serious look on her face and knew she wasn't going to like what was about to be said.

"Let's not " replied Leia. "I know I'll win anyway."

"Wuss" muttered Mara.

"What?!" Leia exclaimed. "No I'm not. Take that back!"

Leia jumped up to her feet and glared at Mara. The two of them turned around ready to race and ran right into someone. Falling to the ground the both of stood up and stared up.

"Ani?!" Mara yelled happily. "You found me!"

"Who is this?" Vader said staring at the girl besides Mara. The Sith Lord looked at the other girl besides the Emperor's Hand. For a moment he was reminded of somebody.

"This is my new friend Leia, she sleeps with a teddy bear."

"AHHH! You told someone!" Leia cried, hitting Mara on the shoulders.

The Sith Lord finally decided he was trying to remember something that wasn't there.

"Want to come back to the palace with us Leia?" Vader asked.

"Come on!" Mara yelled. "I'll show you my room."

Looking back at Mara she nodded her head. Mara had been the only girl around her age that she had seen in the past week being off Alderaan. She suspected her daddy wouldn't mind that she finally met someone.

"Let's get going then"

The driods around them were still fixing the walls as they walked through the hallway. The Emperor's chambers had almost been completely rebuilt from the inside out. Their footsteps were the only thing heard as Mara jumped onto the couch.

"Stay here… please." Muttered Vader. "While I make a call."

Leia looked around here and was in complete awe.

"You _live_ here?" she nearly yelled.

"Something like that…" replied Mara smiling. "Want to see my doll collection?"

"Yes!" Leia shouted excitedly.

Mara got up and led her to her room. The door side open as they looked at the vast room before them. Leia ran to the group of dolls put together in the neat pile on the bed and jumped into it laughing crazily.

"Leia… can I ask you a favor?"

"What?"

"Do you have any makeup with you?" smiled Mara. "I want to try something out."

Darth Vader looked at the hologram before him. The emperor's image radiated the dark side even though he wasn't even there. After a while of waiting the emperor finally spoke.

"I have arrived in this system and will be at Imperial City shortly."

"Yes my master…"

There was another long pause.

"By the way where's Mara?"

The Sith Lord held in a breath as if the emperor could read minds, which he couldn't. Sensing the two young girl near by he returned his attention to the emperor.

"She is… nearby."

"Good…" smiled the emperor. "Make sure you keep it that way."

The image flicked off and Darth Vader was left alone in the dark room. Getting up he walked to the exit, but suddenly felt a void. Then blackness consumed him as he fell to the ground.

The images were blurred as he opened his eyes. Mara and Leia were standing right in front of him. Trying to get up he realized he was tied around one of the rare statues. This was bad, extremely bad.

"What's going on?!" Vader asked.

"Leia and I have decided that you need a little make up to make yourself look _better."_

Mara took out the lipstick and moved it slowly toward his helmet.

"I demand you release me now!" Vader yelled.

"Not till I'm done making you look pretty for the emperor, Anakin..." Mara laughed menacingly.

to be continued…


	6. A Bad Day Becomes The Worse Day

Standard Disclaimer: I don't own StarWars. I'm just writing stories for fun so I'm making no profit from this story.  
A/N: Please review.  
Author: Angel Kamiya

Making a Lightsaber

Chapter Six

Emperor Palpatine's shuttle finally landed in the hanger and he walked out flanked by his Royal Guards. The moon was in the sky and so were the speeders that made their way. They almost reached his chambers when the dark ruler sensed the void. The connection he had to the force had been severed, which meant a ysalamiri was nearby. The small creatures had a unique ability to push the force away so a force adept would become powerless. The Emperor knew no one could have gotten pass security except for Darth Vader and Mara. Darth Vader wasn't doing his job; he would have to be punished severely. Turning to the robed guards besides him he smiled evilly. He would leave it to Mara.

"Let's come back in a few minutes…"

The laughter echoed through the room as he struggled to get free. Closing his mind and reaching for the force he only felt the dark void. There was a low purring sound, which followed the laughter. Looking to his right Vader saw the creature responsible for all his torture, a lone ysalamiri. He was defenseless without the force or a saber. The only thing he felt was the cold war paint on his mask. The two young girls finally returned from their bedroom with more of what they ran out of.

"Hey Anakin how's it going?" Mara asked.

"Release me!" Vader commanded.

The two girls both started laughing. Mara threw another jar of face cream to Leia who caught it and opened the lid. Taking a small brush from the ground she slowly walked to where the Sith Lord was tied up and went on her knees. She started moving the brush over his mask.

"NOOOO!" yelled Vader.

Moving to the side he knew struggling wasn't going to help him as he was still tied to the statue. He looked at horror as the girl with the red-gold hair took out a holocam.

"We should take a picture of this!" Laughed Mara. "It will last longer."

Several flashes followed then they ran out of the room with the holocam and the small creature laughing. As they left he felt the force returning and closed his mind. The statue behind him cracked and fell to pieces as he was freed.

"Finally!"

Hearing some footsteps he looked up and saw the hooded figure.

"Master!"

Mara and Leia sat on the bench and looked up at the stars. Mara set the small creature down and put the holocam in Leia's hands. The ysalamiri dashed forward into the small garden leaving them alone to watch the starlight. 

"Pretty stars…" muttered Leia. "But I still have to finish some of my homework so I cant be out here too long."

"I hate studying" Mara interrupted. "I'm never going to need to know how to read or add or subtract!"

"Maybe he wants you to become a geek when you grow up." Replied Leia.

"No way Princess!" Mara answered. "When I grow up I'm going to be sooooo pretty and be married to a handsome prince!"

"Like that ever happen…"

The two of the sat there and tossed the holocam at each other, catching it each time. They were completely alone since no one was allowed into the emperor's chambers or the surrounding area.

"Well at least I'm not Miss-I'm-going-to-dress-up-so-I'll-get-more-money-girl!" replied Mara.

"I'll have you know my mommy always told me to dress to impress!"

"Sure…"

As they talked another sound came from the small creature. The ysalamiri belonged to someone named Prince Xizor and the cage that held it was being stored in the Emperor's chambers. Mara felt sad that it was being caged and thought it was better that lizard-like creature was freed. The creature lightly jumped into Leia's arms again. Mara was terrible with pets but this didn't seem the case with her older friend. Before their plan actually started Mara thought they wouldn't get the ysalamiri out of the cage without someone getting their fingers bitten off, but then Leia came near the cage and it immediately calmed down. The creature seemed to love Leia.

The night didn't seem so cold to either of them now that they both finally had someone to talk to. They stared at the sky as another breeze of wind blew past them. Mara took off the necklace that held the lightsaber. Turning it so it faced up, she pushed the button and a blue blade appeared. The blade glowed with a bluish glow and gave off a low hum as Mara spun it around in an arc. Anakin was good at piloting and it seemed she was good with handling lightsabers.

"A real lightsaber!" Leia uttered. "I only read about them in story books....."

"It's Ani's, I'll be making a lightsaber one day too when I finish my training!" replied Mara. "Now what should we do with these pictures?"

The Emperor looked at the servant before him and started laughing so did the Royal Guards behind him. Vader glared at them and the Guards immediately shut up. The Emperor only had a smirk on his face.

"_They_ did this!" Vader began.

Pointing his hand to his right a towel flew into Vader's grip. Quickly wiping the make up away he got to his feet and walked to his emperor. Getting on his knees he looked down at the ground. The room became very quiet as the Guard took the silent order from their emperor and left.

"I have failed my master. I _rather_ be eaten alive then look after her!"

"This may seem difficult my friend but there _is_ a reason I chosen you for this undertaking. My plan is unfolding as we speak. _You_ will be facing him soon…"

Darth Vader stood up and glanced at the direction of Mara's room.

"Lord Vader, see to it that they are comfortable until his arrival."

The two girls walked into the room and the two men turned their attention toward them.

"Can Leia stay for a SLEEP OVER?" Mara asked. "Plllleeeeaaaassssseeeeee…"

"Sure thing…" the emperor smiled.

Turning his head, the emperor began to walk to his chambers leaving the two girls and Vader alone. The two girls ran to Mara's room and it closed before the Sith Lord could say anything. Vader sat down on the couch and took out the remote and aimed it on the holovid. He had always believed that his last master was gone. Although the emperor's explanation had suggested otherwise. The news was on and his attention returned to the monitor.

"We have these pictures sent to us by someone only named Mara… They appear to be…"

Darth Vader looked in horror at the monitor.

"What?! NO!"

to be continued…?


	7. Getting A Wish! Vader Meanwhiles

Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars. I'm writing this for my enjoyment and the possible enjoyment of others.  
A/N: It's been a while since I last updated this; well here is the rest of the story. Thanks Culf for pointing out my typo. Review and tell me what you think!

Making a Lightsaber

Chapter Seven

Mara looked over that rail of the balcony as the new day began. As dozens of air-speeders went by she scanned the area with the Force for anything unusual. It was a chilly night but she was starting to get use to the fact that nights on Courscant were always cold. She had been at the palace for a while now and nearly everyday had been about preparing to be trained. Preparing seemed the only thing she was doing since the Emperor rarely was even in the same room as her. Mara missed the assistant who had helped her adjust to this new life. She was always nice. Yet so many exciting things had in the past few days that she forgotten that she had once been homesick. After trying to sense anyone out of the ordinary in the speeder traffic below she finally gave up. The Force powers that the Emperor claimed she had never seemed to work when he wasn't right next to her.

"So is he here yet?" a voiced asked behind her.

"Nothing." Mara replied. "Looks like your dad isn't here to pick you up yet."

"I'm sure he'll be here any moment. Want to meet later today or tomorrow?" Princess Leia asked. "That was a nice sleepover."

"Right!"

"So how did you get here Mara?"

"I was from some where else." Mara started. "It's hard to remember for some reason. But I hope I begin my training soon so I can get something to do besides listening to meetings and studying everything."

"What kind of Training?"

"I'm suppose to have lots of potential or so the Emperor says. I trust him but I just....."

Before she could finish her sentence she was interrupted by something ringing. Mara reached into her pocket and got out a small comlink, several lights were blinking on the small device. The comlink had been given to her months before and it made it possible for the Emperor to communicate with Mara any place she went.

"_Mara I want you to go to my throne room right now"_

Mara winked at that command. It looked like she might be in trouble.

"Okay I'll be there My Emperor," she replied in the most serious voice she could muster.

"See you later Leia."

Mara Jade walked through a large corridor part of the palace. The Imperial palace was as busy as always with officers and political officials all doing their own duties. She wondered how strange it might have been to see a six year old walking at where they worked. Most of them were human but she recognized a few aliens who all wore either a uniform or robes.

There seemed to be more stormtroopers on duty then normal. All of the entrances to the palace were protected by guards with blasters which was a little unsettling. Mara felt the lightsaber's weight on her belt. She wondered how dueling someone felt like, since she only heard about the Jedi and their swords of light in stories. She wondered if Darth had been a Knight before. Finally reaching the most heavily guarded elevator in the palace she brought out her ID card.

As the elevator moved closer and closer to the Emperor's throne room, Mara glanced at the two very tall Royal Guards that stood besides her. They had not moved or even made a sound in the last few seconds and she was getting nervous.

"How have you two been doing? I'm sorry I don't know your names."

The two men didn't reply.

"Okay..." Mara answered quietly.

As the elevator finally stopped and the doors opened, she quickly got out. Mara had only been to the Emperor's throne room on a few occasions, the last time when it almost fell apart. She was surprised that everything had been either repaired or replaced. There were three men in the center of the room. The Emperor sat at his favorite chair while Darth Vader and some green skinned alien stood before him.

"......and I want security to be increased before the Jedi is brought to the palace. Remember that they are dangerous. Thank you Prince Xizor for this piece of information. Your late Mara."

"Sorry"

Mara jumped and sat on the arm of the chair. She wondered why she had been called here. The man dressed in black didn't seem happy to be here.

"Now for the last thing of the day. I would like to announce two things. Prince Xizor will be staying at the palace for the next few days to help handle this Jedi problem. "

For the first time since she arrived Darth Vader stepped forward.

"Why would we do that my Master? I am perfectly capable of...."

"Silence my apprentice. Prince Xizor has provided us with valuable information and we must be grateful. He will enjoy everything we can offer him in the palace."

"Understood Master." Vader uttered.

"Good my apprentice. You have done a good job these last few days watching Mara. But I need you to do one more thing. I want you to train her until she will be able to pass my tests."

"uhh..." 

"What is it Vader?" Palpatine asked.

The Sith Lord was silent for a few moments. He was obviously thinking of what to say or to change what he was about to say. Mara looked at him with interest. She had grown to like being under his care since she had first met him a few days ago. She was happy that she would be able to be around him for a while longer.

"Nothing my master. I only ask for your permission to punish her if she doesn't follow my requests."

Mara fell off the chair in surprise. Did she hear what she thought she just heard? She quickly got back up rubbing her elbow.

"Of course my apprentice. This is the end of the meeting for today." The Emperor waved.

While Vader nodded at the older man. Mara looked around to see if she could make an escape. However even though she knew she could run fast there was only one exit and Vader was in front of it. Things didn't look good. She was frozen but managed to look up in fright as someone very tall stopped before her.

"Hi Darth, about what happened yesterday..."

To be continued....


	8. Meeting More Kids

Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars since it still belongs to George Lucas. I'm just borrowing some characters from him and Timothy Zahn to star in my story.  
A/N: Please review, I really appreciate it when people take the time to respond!  
Author: Angel Kamiya 

Making a Lightsaber

Chapter Eight

Darth Vader knew that he would probably be very busy that night after the meeting with the Emperor. While Vader knew how to do many things well like piloting TIE fighters or fighting, being a Master probably wouldn't be one of them. He wasn't very sure if he could teach anyone well enough to be consider the Emperor's agent! However the sooner Mara Jade learned what she had to know from him the sooner she could then start being taught by the Emperor. That was probably what the Emperor's plan was when he gave him this assignment.

Vader was at his office looking for something that would help him with his new mission. The office was a rectangular room that was mostly empty space since it only contained a desk and two chairs. He considered himself a neat freak that hated messy rooms, which was why he hated going into Mara's room. After a few moments of searching he finally found the journal. He was going to need a way to keep track of how Mara Jade would be doing and a journal was the obvious thing to use. After putting everything else away the Sith Lord left his office and headed for Mara's room.

Vader and Mara had walked for several minutes now and were almost at the shop. He had told her that they were going there because he needed to buy some supplies for her. During the trip Mara told him that she was tired but Vader refused to carry her because he didn't want her to become lazy growing up. Mara finally gave up when she realized that he wasn't going to change his mind anytime soon.

They saw a few aliens along with countless human citizens and human officers. Nearly halfway there, Vader saw a few Stormtroopers slacking off at their post near an entrance to an Imperial weapons shop. Getting angry he left Mara's side for a moment to discipline them. 

Finally they arrived in the small shop without any more incidents.

"We arrived, don't get lost Mara."

The girl ran forward anyway.

"Mara don't.. argh..." Vader sighed. "Why is it so hard for her to follow my orders?"

Darth Vader hated the media and people gawking at him when he went outside so he rarely went outside the palace and on the streets to get things. There were only a few places he went to and this general shop was one of them. From outside, the shop didn't look like anything special so it didn't have too many customers.

"It's a pleasure to see you again Lord Vader," said an employee's voice from behind the counter.

"Thank you, can you get these things on this list?" Vader requested, handing over the piece of paper.

"Of course," the man answered, taking the list. "Was that cute young girl with red hair that just ran in here your daughter?"

"Of course not." Vader explained, surprised that anyone could think that. Vader never raised children before meeting Mara Jade, but he had the complete belief that if he did they would be better behaved. After all he had been a good boy to his mother and even a better apprentice when he was assigned to Obi-Wan Kenobi. Most of the time anyway...

"She is just my responsibility for the next few days!"

"If you say so." the teenage boy answered.

"That's the truth." he insisted.

As the Sith Lord left the counter he did a quick scan of the store looking for Mara. As he suspected there were only a few people there shopping. Some of them didn't even realize that he was there. After a few quick sweeps he found Mara. She was playing with a toy animal on the floor. It was a blue Dewback. Vader remembered a few times when Dewbacks helped pull racing pods at Tatooine when he was a boy.

"Nooooooooo." she imitated the voice of a Rebel soldier, as the dewback she was holding jumped on a Rebel figure. The rebel toy fell to the ground and its head broke. Mara continued to attack it furiously with the animal until the Rebel right arm fell off. 

"And the evil Rebel died, and died!"

Vader sighed again. Everything she broke he had to pay for and this was another thing on the list.

"Mara stop breaking all those things." He growled.

"Darth!" she exclaimed at his sudden appearance.

Vader reached forward and quickly caught the toy Dewback she dropped.

"Stop breaking everything you see." Vader asked again starting to get annoyed.

"I don't br..." she started, stumbling into him making him drop the Dewback.

Mara knew that she was klutzy but was mad that Darth couldn't this. She was still a kid! What did he expect from someone that was going to be his apprentice? Did he expect her to be perfect at everything or something?

"Come here Mara," he ordered.

Vader realized the people staring at them and started to get embarrassed. He was starting to learn that this was rather common whenever he was around this girl. Mara spun around to try to escape but she suddenly froze as she felt herself stopping. He was using the force to freeze her in her tracks.

"Your heartless! That's probably why do don't have friends Anakin."

Darth Vader at that moment got really really mad. Now usually whenever he had a bad temper he could control himself whenever he tried hard enough. But this was the last straw. Mara was being a bigger brat then usual! Before she could make a move he picked her up with one arm.

"You need to stop causing so much trouble little girl and start being useful!"

He gave her a few good whacks during the spanking. Mara first felt confusion, second embarrassment, third anger and finally responded by crying. After a few seconds she managed to roll away to the ground. Getting furious she ran outside to cool off.

Outside she managed to calm down and then started thinking. Why was it that Anakin always made her so angry? Unable to answer her own question Mara only sat near the shop's door outside looking at the traffic in the sky. Life was pretty unfair because she only knew so few people. The Emperor liked to have other people deal with her and Vader seemed to not like her so far. She wondered what Princess Leia was up to. Probably studying or going out with her pals.

Mara heard suddenly heard several kids yelling over the noise of traffic. Normally Mara wouldn't have bothered concerning herself with people yelling at each other but it was a bunch of kids and with the exception of Leia, Mara hadn't met any in the past few months being stuck by herself in the Imperial Palace. She sneaked toward the sound to investigate. 

It looked like two older kids, probably bullies that were picking on a smaller kid around her age. She could see that the two bullies were trying to take something away from the younger boy who was wearing an odd looking cap. Mara suddenly grew very angry because she really hated bullies; she got bullied all the time when she was younger. She didn't realize that she was clenching her fists and also slowly walking forward.

"Hey you two dorks stop that!" she yelled.

The two boys stopped and glared at her. Mara realized that she accidentally insulted them when she really wanted to do was to tell them to quit it.

"Nobody calls us that you stupid girl!" the green looking bully to the right countered.

"If I'm stupid does that make you two Jar Jar?" she sneered.

"That's it!" The blue looking bully to the left shouted.

They both started forward but Mara didn't give them much chance to do anything else. If anyone else had been watching the fight from a distance they would have only seen a quick dash followed by a blur of movement. The two bullies fell to the ground afterwards holding their stomachs in pain and Mara laughed at how it easy had been to take care of them.

"Ouuuuuucccchhh!!" she wailed a moment later feeling the pain of a scraped elbow. Mara really couldn't take pain very well. The two bullies slowly got up and ran away from the girl that they underestimated.

"No thank you yet?" Mara asked sarcastically, as she turned to look at boy that was helped. Instead of seeing him on the ground as expected, there was nothing there except a cap. Picking up the cap she wondered where he disappeared to. She got a little annoyed that he didn't at least take the time to say a simple "thank you" before leaving, but she realized afterwards that helping him had been more important then getting credit. Making sure that he had in fact disappeared she ran back to the Shop.

As Vader left the store Mara noticed the bag full of items that he was carrying. He stopped when he saw the little girl and pointed his finger at her.

"Have you thought about what I said? I had to fix all the problems you caused and I don't want to do it again. Now let's go back to the Imperial Palace. You have many things to do starting tomorrow." Vader announced.

"If you say so Darth" Mara replied, rubbing her elbow.

To be continued......


	9. Training With A Sith Lord

Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars because it belongs to George Lucas. For this story I will be borrowing some characters from him and Timothy Zahn.  
A/N: Please review, I really appreciate it when people take the effort to review my stories!  
Author: Angel Kamiya 

Making a Lightsaber

Chapter Nine

Mara Jade was lying on the ground as she started to wake up from her dream. It seemed that she had somehow fallen off the chair that she had been sleeping in. Getting up she slowly took a seat still feeling a little drowsy. It had taken hours after she came back with Vader last night before she could finally fall asleep because there had been so many things on her mind. Was she going to do well or was she destined to fail and get thrown out onto the street?

She had went to Vader's office earlier then he had asked her to because she was too excited to stay in bed and too afraid that she might oversleep. The mourning light that passed through the windows hit her skin bringing warmth and the promise of another wonderful day. After waiting a short while Vader finally arrived to his office carrying several bags.

She was sitting there wearing a green dress and trying to stay awake as Vader rummaged through one of the bags. He pulled out a robe after a while of searching. It was dark brown and he thought that it would be perfect for his new apprentice.

Mara only looked distastefully at it. She couldn't believe anything could look so bad and started shaking her head realizing why he had gotten it in the first place.

"I don't want to wear that." She announced. "I'd look horrible in a dusty old robe." 

The Sith Lord threw the robe at her nevertheless and she caught it.

"Try that on or else." Vader answered.

Mara hesitantly wrapped the article of clothing around herself and fell forward after a few moments of standing. Much to her dismay not only did the thing look terrible but it was as heavy as a rock. He pointed his finger at her and then quickly waved it to the right. After trying to adjust to the thing she started walking across the room trying not to trip on the bottom part of the robe. She barely succeeded after finally stopping to sit at the couch.

"There that wasn't so bad was it?" The Sith Lord asked in a proud voice.

"I can barely move." Mara complained. "I have any idea! I'll be right back."

Throwing off the brown robe Mara ran into the room. Vader heard several crashing noises and what he thought was the sound of an animal yelling before Mara returned with something reddish in her hands. She had apparently been holding out on wearing that piece of clothing until today.

"How about this?" she asked as she put the piece of fabric on.

It was a light red small cloak which only fell to her knees. As she skipped around the room she pulled the hood over her head without any trouble.

"I'm wearing a robe and looking fashionable too!" she uttered. 

"What I gave you was fine" Vader argued. "No apprentice of mine is going to wear bright colors when learning from me!"

"But Darrrrrrtttthhh!"  
  
"Stop whining." Vader interrupted.

Mara ran out of Vader's chambers much to his surprise. He walked to the exit to try to find out where she went. This was starting to become routine but instead of having to look for her, he nearly walked into the Emperor! She was tugging his hand trying to get him in there.

"What is it Mara?" The Emperor asked. "I'm very busy right now. Oh I see. Your right what your wearing is much better looking then that thing on the floor."

Mara looked up at Vader in triumphant.

"Fine, then wear that wretched robe of yours" Vader muttered, suddenly getting the urge to blow up the galaxy. "But you must wear what I got you for at least today!"

As she started to change out of the her robe and put the new one over her dress, Vader turned his attention toward the Emperor. He had nearly forgotten to bid farewell to the Emperor today.

"Have a pleasant trip my Master" Vader said to the Emperor.

"Your going somewhere again?" Mara asked curiously.

"That's correct. I have to deal with an important planet near the state of uprising. My appearance should increase the Imperial support there. I hope you two stay safe while I'm away." He smiled.

Before leaving, Palpatine gave Mara a red lollypop as a treat. He left for his personal transport afterwards followed by his Royal Guards. The Sith Lord suddenly wondered why The Emperor seemed to always have an endless supply of lollypops on him. One of the many mysteries of the Sith he thought.

"Are we going to wait here all day, let's get going!" Mara exclaimed, trying out the piece of candy. "Do you want some Darth?"

"No." Vader answered.

Mara ran outside in the sunlight in joy. The Imperial Palace behind her she was staring to enjoy being outside way more then being inside.

"What a beautiful day!" She stated. "Perfect!"

Darth Vader remained silent.

"What's wrong Darth?" She asked. "Why are you always so dark and serious all the time?"

"That's just how I am! It's none of you concern. Now follow me."

Mara nodded and followed his order. The both of them walked to a less populated street not too far away from the palace. Vader walked to the left and right slowly as he tried to remember the speech that he had prepared last night. It a taken him a few hours to think up because he had never been an especially great speech writer.

"The galaxy is filled with a near infinite amount of people. A very few of those individuals are born with the gift and ability to tap into the Force. It's a source of knowledge and powers that few...... Mara pay attention!" He uttered, seeing that she was starting to stare around.

Mara stopped looking around and returned her attention back to her new Master.

"I mean it when I say pay attention! Well let's skip the introduction for today." He grumbled. "I will be teaching you three lessons over the next three days that you will have to memorize and then have pass a test at the end. If you don't pass I will have to tell the Emperor that you aren't ready to be taught by him."

"What's the first lesson?" she asked, starting to get afraid that she just might fail any tests given by Darth Vader.

"Exercising is the first step to becoming an effective apprentice."

"Like... running... jumping... sit-ups.... pushups...." She stated slowly.

"That's correct, an apprentice should be in good shape before even starting learning about the Force."

Before he could continue speaking he felt something latch onto his left leg. He looked down to see that it was Mara! She was looking at him with scared green eyes.

"Darth. Please don't make me run. I get tired very easily and...."

"You sure didn't look tired after all those times you ran away from me after blowing something up!" Vader interrupted. "Now go, Mara. Move. Move!"

He kicked his left leg lightly to try to get her off but only succeeded in making both of them fall to the ground. There a loud crash that made everyone around them look in their direction. The Sith Lord tried using the Force to get her off of him but failed, since she was holding his leg too tightly.

"Mara get off my leg!" he ordered.

Mara shook her head quickly and started crying.

"Don't make me Darth, don't make meeee!"

"Get off!" Vader uttered one final time.

The little girl reluctantly started loosing the grip she had on his leg as he started raising his voice. The Sith Lord reached for her and lightly pushed her off. She took a few steps backward before hanging her head in defeat.

"Off you go" Vader said, gently poking her in the shoulder.

Mara started jogging very slowly after they both got back up. She wasn't very happy with what she had to do in her first day of training. Not happy at all.

After a few hours they lost each other because of the crowds. Mara sat down on the sidewalk in front of a cantina to take a break. Trying to ignore the loud music and strange noises she folded her arms and put her head down. This was too hard for her! She couldn't move her arms anymore and her feet were starting to hurt from being worked too much.

"I can't do this." she muttered to herself.

Mara didn't sense him as he appeared at the scene.

"Are you alright?" asked a familiar voice.

Looking up she saw the boy that she had helped last night. He was around her age if not older and had deep blue eyes that made him good looking.

"Hey! You didn't say thanks to me for helping you the other night" Mara teased. "Nice to meet you again my name is Mara."

"Sorry Mara, she was after me. Thank you."  
  
Mara looked suspicious at him after his comment. Someone was after him? He didn't look like a criminal or one of those evil rebels the Emperor was always ranting about.

"Your welcome." Mara continued. "But you might not have enough time to get me a thank you present, because you might be seeing the last of Mara Jade tonight. I'm about to fail a test and have my life ruined forever!"  
  
"Are you even trying to pass?" he asked.

"Of course I am!" Mara answered, furious. "I mean I'm trying my best. I've been running for hours and everything!"

  
"That's nothing, I can run for days without stopping! Want to race to that pole over there to see who is faster?"

Mara looked over to where he had been pointing at. The pole was several yards away which meant the race would be easy for her. She had almost raced Leia a short while ago but that had ended when they both crashed into Anakin. Agreeing to his offer they both started off the same distance away from the destination. At the same moment they both ran forward.

The race was close and Mara was even about to win. However before she could reach the destination she had tripped on her robe and fell to the ground. The moment she hit the ground she bursted out crying. Not only was she hurt but she had lost!

"I would have won if it wasn't for this stupid robe!" she complained, getting back up.

"You should've continued running, because I haven't crossed the finish line yet. You give up too easily Mara."

Mara really wanted tell him he was wrong, but she didn't think he was completely off.

"You might be right. One thing is for sure, I'm never going to lose to someone like you again! Thanks."

Mara smiled at him. Suddenly she noticed that he was slowly turned his head to the left and then to the right as if sensing someone was nearby.

"Oh no, she's back! I have to go. Good luck on your test!"

As he ran off she had the strangest feeling. It was as though she remembered him from before yesterday. Shrugging off the feeling she raced back to find Vader.

A few minutes later she had found Vader near a fountain. The sun was starting to set as Mara Jade continued to run through the busy street with Darth Vader following behind. He easily was keeping up with her since for each step he took she had to take three. The boy from yesterday had really helped Mara today by making her see that what was happening right now was important and she shouldn't give up so easily. Also she promised herself that she was never going to lose to anyone like him in a race again after embarrassing herself! As expected many people looked at them during the exercise because it was strange seeing Lord Vader and a little girl out together.

"Can I get some water Darth, I'm so thirsty!"

"No, keep moving."

Later the Sith Lord took a seat at a bench and he told her to run in a large circle around him. He was staring to get disappointed at her because she wasn't very good at this first training lesson. Mara didn't want to follow his directions at first but had to after a few seconds of pointing by Vader. Running she had wished that maybe she had gotten another master, because Anakin was so strict! As Vader turned his head distracted by a balloon passing by, Mara stopped to take a deep breath. She saw something on the ground and suddenly smirked a little bit.

Vader stared at the balloon that was passing by. It reminded him of when he had gone on a balloon ride along with Padmé when he had still been Obi-Wan's student. The memory brought some old feelings back to him and then anger when he remembered that she was gone now. He had missed having her around and....

"MEANY!!" came Mara's very bitter voice.

A spray of water came forward and blasted him. Darth Vader was pushed by a blast of water as got to his feet. She was blasting him with a water hose! Getting mad he moved forward but ended up slipping and falling to the ground.

"What?!" he yelled.

"That's for being so mean the whole day, and not letting me get any water!" Mara explained, out for revenge.

After a few seconds, the water that was shooting out of the hose suddenly stopped.

"Oh no! No!" Mara yelled, shaking and trying to make the hose work again.

Darth Vader slowly got up and leaned his head forward. Several droplets of water fell from off mask and onto the ground.

"Ekkk!" Mara screamed as she started to run away.

The Sith Lord gave her a few seconds head start and then started after her. During that run however he found it was pretty hard to catch up with her. She wasn't so bad at running as he had first thought! After a while though he did catch up with her and stopped her in her tracks with the Force. 

"Please don't hurt me Darth! I was just kidding around." she pleaded, putting her arms over her head.

As Vader reached his right hand forward Mara closed her eyes bracing herself for anything. Instead of anything bad however she felt him lightly tap her on the head.

"You have done well today my apprentice, and have passed my first test. You can run fast after all!"

Mara opened her eyes surprised that she wasn't in major trouble.

"Let's go back and get cleaned up." Vader suggested, trying not to laugh at how ridiculous Mara looked at the moment drenched in water. "I suppose we can go out later tonight." 

To be continued....


	10. Break Time

Disclaimer: No infringement intended.

Author: Angel Kamiya 

Making a Lightsaber

Chapter Ten

After leaving the Palace earlier that night, Mara didn't cause any problems like usual. Maybe it was because she was tired after the long day of training or was afraid of not getting dinner if she misbehaved again. Whatever the reason, Darth Vader was glad that she seemed to be starting to act like a real apprentice. However it still annoyed him so much that the girl rarely paid attention to him. Mara's hair as usual was untidy and if it had been any longer she would have looked even more peculiar. The Sith Lord had decided to go out with her tonight because he wanted to get out of the Palace to avoid Prince Xizor.

"Thank you Darth!" Mara exclaimed, eating the ice cream that he had just bought for her.

"I suppose there is no harm in letting you have a few sweets once in a while."

"More like letting me have a few every decade..." She muttered.

"What was that little girl?" Vader asked, annoyed.

"Oh nothing. Wow there are so many people out tonight!" Mara quickly answered, trying to change the subject.

"Coruscant is rarely quiet."

"Oh.... Hello!" she blurted out seeing someone approach them.

"Lord Vader, it's a surprise to see you out so late." said the robed figure.

"Prince Xizor, I apologize for not remembering to attend the meeting that you had suggested for tonight." Vader lied. The Sith Lord actually had planned to skip the meeting, since he dreaded having to be stuck in an office with someone he disliked for hours. Taking a girl out, even if it was Mara Jade, was at least ten times more interesting to him then another long conversation with the Prince.

"If you're not busy now why don't we start right now... May I ask who is that girl that you are with?" Xizor inquired.

"I'm his smart and cute daughter!" Mara explained, before Vader could reply. "Poppa was very happy with me." Vader didn't understand what she was trying to do at first, but realized what was happening when she took his cape.

"In fact... Darth can't go with you right now since he is taking me out on a panic right about now."

"I see, then we shall have to reschedule for tomorrow." Xizor answered, acting like there was something he still needed to do. Nodding his head the tall man turned and left the two of them alone.

"You should have pretended along with me." Mara answered trying not to laugh.

"Mara don't tell anyone else that you're my daughter again." Vader ordered. "I don't want my reputation any more damaged then it already has been."

"What a rude thing to say to someone who just helped you get out of a boring meeting!"

The two of them saw many interesting sights during their night out. Mara jumped at every bright light that they passed, and tried to talk to any kids that passed by. The Sith Lord had to hold her back when she tried to get away again. Afterwards a brightly lit arcade building caught her attention. Mara had to pull his arm with all of her might just to get him to the entrance.

"Can we go in?" Mara uttered excitedly.

"Games are a waste of time."

"Oh come on!" Mara pleaded pulling him forward. "One game won't kill you."

The little girl saw a gaming stand brightly lit blue, she took his arm again trying to get him to walk faster with her. Taking a few Imperial coins from his pocket, Vader put a few on the counter. 

"Hello welcome to.... I can't believe it! Lord Vader! Lord Vader! Can I have your autograph?!" asked the excited teenage girl behind the counter.

"Perhaps afterwards" the Sith Lord replied, annoyed at her reaction.

"Sorry my Lord. To play this game you much take a blaster and shoot these moving Gungan targets." the girl said pointing to the moving targets in the back that were painted to look like aliens with long ears. "If you hit at least three of those things after ten shots then you win a prize!"

"Let me go first!" Mara squealed making a grab for the small black blaster on the counter. Looking at it curiously she moving her fingers until she saw that Vader was reaching over to take it away. The girl try frantically to hold onto the blaster but they both ended up dropped it after a short pulling contest between them. There was a loud bang which was followed by something that smelled like burning.

Darth Vader felt his foot on fire after the smoke cleared and fell to the ground trying not to curse.

"I didn't mean it." Mara answered shocked, rushing over to see what exactly happened.

"This is a dangerous weapon! Even if it's only on the stun setting!" He shouted, still holding his right foot. "Let me handle this, I'm more skilled at combat."

Mara started at him as he got back to his feet with some difficulty. Vader pointed the blaster forward at the targets, aimed, and then fired. The bolt of energy flew at the target but hit several feet from where it was supposed to hit. Surprised that he had missed, Mara tried standing on her tiptoes to get a better look. After a few more shots he had still not hit any of the moving Gungans. Mara wasn't exactly paying attention to where the shots had hit because she was just shocked with finding out that her temporary Master wasn't perfect at everything. It had certainly looked that way ever since she had started being around him. Vader seemed to know how to do everything from piloting, to dueling, to reciting Imperial laws, and he even knew how cook! So this was a little unexpected.

"I don't think you are very good at this." Mara tried whispering to him, as he missed again.

Mara Jade decided to sit down on the ground after she unsuccessfully tried getting him to quit the game. Watching Vader trying to hit the targets was getting so tiresome since he still hadn't beaten the game yet. At first the Sith Lord told her he would try a few more times before stopping but that ended up being a dozen more times! Mara wondered if she might have been better off not bailing Vader out of that meeting that he was supposed to go to..

"Darth we gotta go!" Mara repeated pulling at his cape. Instead of getting his cooperation she slipped and felt to the ground.

"Ow! Are you listening to me?"

"We shall leave soon." He muttered, more to himself then to her.

Mara looked at him in anger. Why did her suddenly so immature? He was the adult and she was a kid so being immature was supposed to be her job. Trying to get his attention again one last time she finally gave up. There was no way she was going to wait all night for him! Ignoring the sounds Mara headed for the exit and then the way back to the Imperial Palace. After several minutes she still hadn't gotten over the fact that he had wasted so much time.

"This is what happens when Darth forgets about me..." Mara sighed, trying to find the communicator that had been given to her a few days before.

Reaching into her pocket she felt that the communicator wasn't there. She had somehow left it at home or something so she couldn't contact him and tell him to hurry. Mara wondered what he was doing at that moment. Probably still losing at that stupid game she thought. Running forward she wondered if he was really serious about her being his apprentice. Maybe he didn't really want her as his student she thought sadly. While thinking she didn't realize she had started crossing the street without looking. There was a loud crash that made her shut her eyes in fear. A moment later after making sure that she was still alive, Mara opened her eyes. Someone had pulled her back before she had taken any more steps into the street full of moving speeders!

"Are you alright?"

Mara burst out crying finally realizing what had almost happened to her. Pushing back her emotions she nodded trying to stop sobbing.

"I'm... I'm sorry, I usually don't cry this much."

One of a few safety lectures that Vader had given her the first day as his apprentice was to watch both sides of the street before crossing without him. Mara had thought that nothing bad could possibly happen to her at the time so she hadn't been paying attention during the speech. Now she was really regretting having done something that stupid.

She saw that the rescuer was the same boy who had talked with her earlier that day. He was holding out his hand to help her back up on her feet.

"Thank you. Why is it that you always seem to be around whenever I'm out with Darth?" she asked, standing back up.

"For some reason I keep bumping into you." he answered.

"What's your name?" Mara asked curiously, taking his hand. "You still haven't told me."

He looked at her suddenly growing quiet. It was though he really didn't want to answer that question.

"Well if you want to keep it a secret or something then I'm going to start calling you Ane." Mara answered, looking at him suspiciously. "Darth's nickname was Ani you know!."

"Okay."

Mara suddenly heard her stomach growling. Embarrassed she took out a few Imperial coins that her master had given her for emergencies.

"Oh I'm soo hungry, let's get something to eat!"

To be continued....


	11. Vader And His Problem

Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars since it still belongs to George Lucas. I'm just borrowing some characters from him and Timothy Zahn to star in my story.  
A/N: Please review, I really appreciate it when people take the time to respond!  
Author: Angel Kamiya 

Making a Lightsaber

Chapter Eleven

When Darth Vader walked into his chamber he didn't expect it would be a compete mess. There were many objects scattered on the ground like toys and clothes which made him think at first that he had accidentally stumbled onto Mara's room. He was beginning to miss the times when his place didn't look like several Jawas had gone through it, now it was a home he didn't even feel comfortable living in. For just a moment he wondered if it would be a good idea to start staying aboard his Star Destroyer. Dismissing the thought, he decided that keeping an eye on her was more important then what he wanted to do.

Picking up a smiling plush toy that was on the ground beside his left foot he threw at the couch that was across the room. It landed on the top of the holovid before falling off and onto the ground. Mara, who seemed to come from nowhere, ran into the room and hugged the toy as if it was something important.

"Darth don't hurt Mr. Fluffy!" she exclaimed, glaring at him with her green eyes. "How would you like it if someone threw you around?"

"Little girl," he started, pointing at her. "You shall clean my chambers up this instant."

"But it's already clean." Mara replied defiantly. "Darth what's that thing you're carrying?"

The Sith Lord looked down at the gray box that he was holding. It was the prize that he had won earlier at the arcade game. When he first saw the prize that was being displayed earlier that night, a part of him for some reason really wanted to win it before leaving. At first he really didn't understand why he wanted it since it was a kids toy, so he decided to give it to Mara after starting to play the game. After a few attempts he finally managed to beat the game. The girl that was watching the game stand looked at him impressed when she handed over the prize.

"If you must know, it's for your training." he explained. "I won't be giving it to you until tomorrow. Now start cleaning."

Waving his fingers and calling on the Force, a basket that was besides the door flew into Mara's hands. Although he had finished giving her the orders, she was still standing there much to his annoyance.

"There is someone I want you to meet Darth!" she exclaimed before running into the kitchen and returning back. Moments she was back with a boy that looked around her age.

"This is Ane." she introduced.

The Sith Lord looked quietly at the boy who for some odd reason had the same nickname that his mother and wife always called him. It was amazing how Mara could make friends so easily while he always needed to make sure none of his co-workers were plotting against him.

"It's a pleasure to meet you... Ane..." Vader commented, turning his attention back to his apprentice. "Mara what are you still doing standing there?"

The girl sighed probably realizing that he wouldn't be changing his mind. Taking a seat on the ground Mara picked up a rubber stormtrooper and put it in the basket that her master had given her to use.

"Darth you make me work _too_ much."

"Hardly." he answered passing her on his way to his office. "When I was your age I was fixing racing pods by myself. You have a much more privileged life when compared to when I was a boy. I'll return in a few moments to check your progress."

Mara sighed again realizing that there was no way she was going to finish cleaning up before Darth could get back. There were just too many things to move and not enough time. Not knowing what to do, she noticed that her guest had started picking things up besides her.

"Ane what are you doing?"

"We need to get this done before your guardian returns." he said.

Mara couldn't help but giggle after hearing what he just called the Sith Lord.

"Darth's is my master so long as I'm the Emperor's Hand in training and he is also the one that looks over me, but he isn't related to me. Actually he gets mad when others mistake me for someone who is related to him for some reason. I don't know why..."

"err..."

"What is it?"

"I think there is a bug in your hair!"

Mara jumped onto her feet in fright. Trying to brush it away she ran forward and crashed into him.

"Ow..." the boy muttered, rubbing his head.

Mara quickly reached into her pocket and took out the make up kit that her friend Leia had given her. Looking into the mirror that came with the kit she saw that the black thing was still in her red hair. Brushing the thing off she saw that it was just a candy wrapper.

"Sorry, bugs really creep me out." she laughed, throwing the wrapper in a waste basket. 

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," he answered. "Just watch where you run into next time."

"Right, Ane do you have anyone that watches over you?"

"Me? Well I did... That was before I got sent to this place."

"You mean you aren't from Coruscant?" she asked curiously, suddenly wondering if there was anything else they had in common. "Don't worry, Darth and I can help you get back home if you want to!"

Mara turned back to start picking up everything on the ground, until she came across a white bottle. Picking it up she smiled realizing exactly what the thing was.

"Mara I don't think you should be doing anything with that." Ane uttered, concerned at why she was staring so long at the bottle.

Darth Vader finally finished looking over the report that each of the captains of his fleet had given to him. The reports were on the status of the ships that were in his fleet, which was orbiting the Imperial home world waiting for him to compete his mission with Mara. Setting all the reports to the side of the table, the Sith Lord rose to his feet and headed for the office's exit. Taking his fist step forward outside his office he noticed that the floor was still a mess, annoyed he took another step to try to find his apprentice to get an explanation. However for some reason he couldn't pick his right foot off the ground! His right foot was stuck on the floor.

"Mara come out here this instant!" he ordered.

"hehe," Mara giggled. "This will teach you not to leave me behind again!"

"Get help now little girl!"

"A little later..." Mara answered, turning to leave. Before she could escape the Sith Lord reached forward with the Force, making her move toward him. Mara tried frantically to run away but instead flew backward knocking the both of them onto the ground.

"Hey! What did you do that for?" Mara asked.

The girl tried moving away from him again but this time found out she couldn't move as well.

"Oh no we're stuck!"

Vader tried to peel her off him but found out that it was not possible.

"Ow! That hurts stop that." Mara uttered, rubbing her ear.

"That is what happens... when you play tricks on others." Vader muttered angry. "How does it feel when it doesn't work?"

"You can yell at me later, we have to try to get out of this Darth!"

To be continued....


	12. A Strange Feeling

Disclaimer: No infringement intended!

Author: Angel Kamiya

A/N: Please review, I love reading feedback!

Making A Lightsaber

Chapter Twelve

Darth Vader stared at the large hologram of the Emperor that was being projected at the center of his office. Just moments earlier he had received a call from Palpatine while he was still trying to get his feet off the ground. The com-link luckily had been on his belt at the time so he could respond. Unable to move during the call, he barely stopped himself from cursing angrily in front of Mara. The Sith Lord somehow managed to think up plan which involved using the lightsaber that Mara had borrowed from him during the first few days she arrived. After a few quick swipes from the glowing weapon, he was glad to be finally able to walk again. He immediately tried peeling Mara off of him again but failed to even move her. Getting the girl off was going to take much more creative. Unable to do anything further, he had no choice but to take her along.

"What is thy bidding my master?" Vader asked, now in his office.

There was a long period of silence that followed, which made him grow uneasy. Usually the Emperor did this whenever they communicated over long distances.

"So you two are getting along I take it..." the Emperor smiled, just noticing the unusual sight before him.

"No we aren't!!!" Mara blurted out unexpectedly, making Vader nearly jump. "Darth forgot to look after me tonight!"

Vader quickly stood up to protest, but before he could his master interrupted him.

"Lord Vader I'm not pleased."

Vader looked at the floor, trying to resist the suddenly desire to shake his fist at Mara, and also wanting to be anywhere but in that room.

"I apologize my master, there was something important that I had to do at that time."

"Mara needs to be kept under constant supervision my friend. She's a very gifted girl so you shouldn't be too hard on her. How is her training going so far?"

Vader was stunned at what his master had just said. Since when did the girl that fell down all the time suddenly become gifted? Mara was to him one of the most untalented children he had ever had the misfortune of meeting!

"Hey!" Mara wailed, almost as though she had read his thoughts.

"Understood master," Vader continued, ignoring Mara's outburst. "I will keep you updated on her status."

Mara looked curiously at the blue projection that was being shown. She had always talked to the Emperor face to face so this was something new for her. The two men soon talked about some Imperial officers and some Prince. After the Emperor finished his call, his image disappeared leaving both of alone again.

"Now, we need to find a way to get you unstuck to me." Vader commented, getting to his feet. "It's already past your bed time."

"Darth, do... do you really think I'm not talented?" she questioned, her eyes suddenly watering.

"Hopefully you might become more talented in the future…"

As Darth Vader walked to the nearest medical center, he found himself looking at the bottle of adhesive that had taken along with him on the trip. There was no useful information on container which could help him. He decided that going for help was the best course of action this time. Luckily, the closest medical center was just a few minutes away. The doctors there probably dealt with odd problems like this all the time he thought. On the way there he noticed many more people out that night then usual.

"Mara I told you that this wasn't a good idea." Ane declared.

The boy had decided to come with them after Vader had told him where they were going.

"I found it on the ground near the couch," Mara told them, trying to be helpful.

"We are going to a hospital to find a solution to this problem." he explained.

"But... Hospitals are sccaaary!" Mara suddenly shouted, nearly making him jump.

"There is nothing to be afraid of little girl." Vader commented. "The people there just want to help."

"No we can't go there! We can't!" she repeated, almost kicking him while trying to get his attention.

Mara shook her head in disbelief.

"Mara stop being so difficult!" he exclaimed, shaking his finger at her.

The girl turned her face away from him trying to not show him her expression.

The comlink on his belt suddenly sounded again. Picking the device up, Vader activated it.

"My Lord we have an emergency! We have a suspected Jedi that we have cornered, we need your assistance!"

"I'll be there shortly." the Sith Lord replied, a little unconvinced. Usually whenever he had returned to Courscant, Imperial troopers would always contact him to inform him of some kind of individual that looked like a Jedi. "Mara I want you to try to be good, this is something important!"

"Darth can I ask you something," she asked, as they headed toward the location the man over the comlink had asked him to go to. "Why do you always wear that creepy looking mask?"

Vader turned the corner to see the group of stormtroopers that had gathered outside a building.

"It's a long story…" he commented mysteriously, scanning the area with his mind. "I have to put on this mask all the time because it helps me breath."

"That's terrible!" Mara exclaimed, looking shocked. "I always thought you wore that mask to just scare people...."

There was a ripple through the Force which immediately caught his attention. It was definitely someone that could be a Force user.

"Don't be silly."

"Don't you miss smelling flowers and eating cakes?" Mara asked, still curious about him.

"I don't smell flowers or eat cakes..."

Walking to the middle aged man that was obvious in charge, Vader finally stopped to talk. The man had gray hair and was wearing the uniform of an Imperial office. Judging by his rank he was a General.

"Give me an update General."

The general looked surprised at the girl who was with the man that was rumored to be very ruthless. It took him a moment to realize it wouldn't be a good idea to make a comment about what he was seeing, so instead he gave his report.

"We have the...." the General started, when all of a sudden everyone except Vader fell to the ground. Darth Vader felt the strong Force power and had waved his hand to try to repel the attack but was still pushed back a little to the ground. He quickly reached for his lightsaber on his belt, but instead found nothing. Realizing it was gone he suddenly was mad at his apprentice and then himself for never making a spare lightsaber after all these years.

"Where did you…"

"I left at back at home..." Mara answered, already knowing his question."

Hoping that she wasn't hurt or anything like that, he quickly got back to his feet.

"Oh what happened? We're finally apart!" she said rather loudly.

"It finally must have worn off..." Vader muttered, very relieved. "Mara, are you well?" 

Vader felt very relieved because there would no need to have to go everywhere with Mara Jade anymore now that they were unstuck.  That would have been very stressful!  Suddenly he felt a little uneasy at the fact that she was with him on this rather dangerous location.  Only recently did he constantly have to worry about safety, which was something didn't give a second thought to.  This was probably because he was now looking after someone and not just himself.

"Mara I want you to head back to the palace immediately."

He called for the stromtroopers that were the closest to them.  Several men in white armor marched to where the both of them stood.  There was no way he was taking any chances by letting Mara wander off alone anymore after all those previous incidents!

"I can take care of myself" Mara tried to assure him, when she stated to leave. "Darth, maybe you and I could go on a panic one day!"

Watching her leave the Sith Lord doubted he would be going on any picnics anytime soon.  The last picnic he had with a girl was with Padme and it really didn't end up well.  Getting frustrated at all those returning feelings he tried getting back to the task at hand.

"What are you men looking at get to WORK!" Vader ordered, crossing his arms and glaring at the officers that were trying to listen in on their conversation.  Checking to see if this was an actual Jedi was infinitely more important then trying to deal with a six year girl or thinking about the past. 

to be continued... 

**A/N:** OHNooo!!!! School is starting in a few days, so I'll be busy the next couple of weeks. ^_^*

I'll try to update this story as soon as time permits it, see ya later!


	13. Vader And The Little Girl

Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars since it belongs to George Lucas. I'm just borrowing some characters from him and Timothy Zahn to star in my story.  
A/N: Review! I really want feedback so I will know what I'm doing right or wrong.  
Author: Angel Kamiya

Making a Lightsaber

Chapter Thirteen

Mara yawned as she woke up from her long nap. The first thing that she saw after opening her eyes was the balcony door that was still opened. Regretting not having closed the balcony door last night, she slowly got up from bed. Mara walked over and shut the door so it wouldn't be so cold. On the way back, she tripped on something small and fell hard onto the ground.

"Ow!" Mara uttered, rubbing her left knee. The thing that had caused her to fall had been one of her toys.

Taking the small box that was placed by the closet; she quickly began throwing everything that was not useful into it. Most of the items were toys and a few were clothes that she hadn't gotten the opportunity to wear. A short time later she found a pretty looking hair pin on the ground by the bookcase. It didn't belong to her but it still managed to get into her room somehow. Not thinking much about it she put the pin on her hair and continued working.

After realizing that this task would not be finished anytime soon she finally stopped to rest for a short while. Returning back to bed, she sat up and hugged her legs then rested her head on one of her knees.

Darth Vader was beginning to tire of all these missions that he was supposed to be doing. Not only was he supposed to look for Jedi and perform Imperial duties, but he now had to see to it that Mara would become a suitable apprentice. The Sith Lord was beginning to miss patrolling systems with his fleet and occasionally flying his TIE fighter. Piloting was what he enjoyed doing the most. After arriving at his chambers he rolled his eyes after discovering that someone had forgotten turn off holovid.

Vader entered Mara's room after shutting it off. He was surprised to see that it had gotten much cleaner. Most of the clothes which usually littered the ground seem to have been put away earlier. Mara had been busy during the time he had been away.

She wasn't in bed waiting for him to wake her up like usual, so he picked up the rest of the items still scattered on the ground and put them all away. After he left, the room looked new again. While searching for her, Vader began hoping that Mara had not wandered off again.

The Sith Lord walked into his office and immediately saw that there was someone asleep on his chair. Seeing Mara there surprised him a little. Tapping her on the shoulder the girl slowly started waking up.

"Darth is that you…"

"What are you doing here?"

"I felt sleepy after dong so much work, sorry. Where were you?" She asked, fiddling with her hair.

"I had several matters to attend to." He answered, crossing his arms.

"Right… Oh what time is it? "Aren't we supposed to be training?!" Mara exclaimed, stretching her arms and jumping off his seat. "We better leave now!"

"Very well," He answered, reaching outward and stopping her from running out of the room. "I expect you to try to behave little girl."

"Right"

During the trip, Vader explained to Mara a little about the Force and its importance. When he was a pawadan he had never looked forward to lectures about the Force but Mara seemed quite interested. She kept asking questions so he didn't get very far in his talk.

"Darth how many days are we going to spend training?"

"Perhaps three or four, I want you to impress the Emperor when he returns."

Later she had taken the time to stare at their surroundings. There were many people out that mourning. Vader didn't pay them any attention because his mind had been on Mara and the Jedi situation. There had been many supposed sightings of a person who matched the description of a Jedi over the past few days, and now he had started believe those rumors.

"Hey, Darth I want to say thanks for trying to teach me these last couple of days."

The Sith Lord, not sure what to say, said the only response that was on his mind.

"The Empeor has ordered me to do this, but your welcome little girl. You don't need to thank me. Just do your best from now on."

"But..." Mara stuttered, looking like she like wasn't very sure on what to say.

Passing by a food stand, suddenly caught Mara's attention. Rolling his eyes the Sith Lord decided to agree to her requests to buy something. He didn't like the fact that she was so spoiled, but also didn't want her complaining he had not followed her requests. For a moment he wondered, how many credits he had spent ever since meeting Mara Jade. Besides fixing broken Imperial Palace after every "accident", he had spent so much on buying Mara's things. Even though he was among one of the most wealthy men in the galaxy, having billions of credits, a part of him hated spending it on so much junk food and toys!

Walking to the stand, the seller snapped to attention. The Sith Lord wasn't surprised since he usually got that reaction whenever he met someone. Mara of course had been a special case.

"I want a candy bar" Mara said, loudly.

"Fine, but only because you cleaned your room this mourning." he replied.

"Lord Vader..." said the seller said little nervously. "You need not pay, please pick out anything that you desire."

"I will be paying" Vader interrupted giving the other women a few credits. "Just give this girl the best thing that you have, I appreciate it."

After getting the candy Mara had, just as he had hoped, gotten quiet. Now preoccupied with eating, she left him to his thoughts. For a little while a least...

"You should eat foods that make you healthy, and less candy little girl." he commented.

The Sith Lord found it strange that no matter how much food that she ate, Mara still remained a cute girl. This was odd, but nevertheless he still wanted her to eat less junk food.

"You're becoming quite the parent." Mara teased, finishing the rest of what he had bought for her.

"Mara!" A voice suddenly interrupted them.

The Sith Lord turned around trying to find the voice that had called out the name. He quickly recognized the young girl that his temporary apprentice had met with before. Again for a moment, he felt a something strange seeing the princess for the second time.

"Leia!" Mara answered, running over. "What are you dong here?"

"I'm on a field trip with my class, good luck today on you know what." Leia commented, apparently already knowing what was going on.

"Leia you should come with us for a little bit, I need someone to cheer me on!"

"Maybe a little later I can." The princess answered, "Good luck!"

"Thanks bye!" Mara uttered, as the other girl left.

To be continued...


	14. Shadows Of The Empire

Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars since it belongs to George Lucas. I'm just borrowing some characters from him and Timothy Zahn to star in my story.  
A/N: Review! I really want feedback so I will know what Im doing right or wrong.  
Author: Angel Kamiya

Making a Lightsaber

Chapter Fourteen

Vader had spent a few minutes watching over Mara when suddenly the comlink that he carried with him activated. Stepping aside he learned that it was from one of his aids and that it was urgent.

"What's going on?" Mara asked, stopping what she was doing.

Mara ran over to where the Sith Lord was standing hoping that he would let her take a break from the tedious exercises. It was kind of interesting but she wanted to go somewhere else like see what her friend Leia was up to. Anything was better the what had been going in the last hour!

"I must leave immediately. Something important requires my attention." Vader muttered.

Mara curiosity had suddenly grown much more. On the way back Mara kept asking Vader who had called but was met with silence. Weren't the supposed to be training? How much longer would she have until the Emperor would see how much she had learned recently? Whatever was going on she hoped that Vader would be back soon.

They arrived at the Imperial Palace. Vader walked across the halls with Mara following not far behind. When they finally got to where Vader wanted he stopped to face the informant.

"How goes your mission?"

"It goes well Lord Vader. I think I have found the person that you are looking for."

Vader took the datapad and looked at the video of person he had been chasing for the past few months. It was another Jedi that was on Coursant. Vader had been looking for that person for a really long time and now he was closer then he had ever been.

"You have done well."

Vader turned back to see why Mara had been so quiet and froze when he saw that she was gone. The Sith Lord glanced around some more but was not able to see her anywhere.

"Did you see someone with me a minute ago?"

"Yes My Lord... The girl left while we were speaking. Do you want me to find her?"

"Not necessary. I've had enough. If the girl wishes to leave then I will let her."

Vader turned and walked away from his spy. Where was Mara now? Vader had to take care of this new information. The person with the Force that he had been feeling over the few days was the person that he had been searching for the past few months. If he had time to look for Mara later then he would do it but not now. Vader walked past the six guards by the entrance.

"If any of you see a small girl with red hair contact me."

"Yes sir." One of the men replied, not bothered by any request.

With that Vader started walking back to his chambers. Mara would have to wait.

Not far away in another building a woman was walking with someone she had never met until that day. They took the elevator and after a few minutes arrived at the room that belonged to he man that owned the building.

"One of our agents brought her in as you requested my Prince." the blonde woman stated, taking off the blindfold from her captive.

"AH! What's going on?" Mara asked, finally seeing who they were for the first time.

"Hello little one."

"You better let me go you Wamp rat. Do you know who I am?"

"Mara Jade. I know what your name is."

"Oh."

Mara started reaching for the comlink that she carried with her in case of emergencies but was disappointed to not find. It seemed the young woman had taken it while she was trying to get away.

"What I find interesting is how suddenly you appeared from out of nowhere."

"What?"

"One day you suddenly appeared on Coruscant. I've had my men looking into your background but unfortunately they've not be successful. According to them you didn't even exist until a few days ago."

"What do you want from me?"

"I've noticed that in the last few days you've been around the Emperor and Lord Vader. You are important to them somehow. Tell me why."

"I'm not-"

"Tell me who you really are. I want to know what your purpose is." Xizor muttered, now walking around her in a circle.

As Mara sat there on the ground she slowly started to talk but quickly stopped. The Emperor told her she must never tell anyone what she was going to become. So Mara really didn't want to find out what could have happened if she didn't follow his directions. No candy, holonet, or new clothes for a month would be really horrible.

"I'm just Vader's new apprentice."

Actually that sort of the truth. Mara was Vader's student at the moment. Where she learned a few basic things about the Force she was going to learn from the Emperor.

"Apprentice? I don't think so."

"Why? You don't think-"

"If you were just his apprentice I would have easily discovered it already. Also Vader has never felt the need to hide his apprentices. I don't think you understand how much trouble you are in little girl." Xizor answered. "Perhaps you'll tell me who you really are after a few days here as my prisoner."

"What? You... you can't keep me here you mean man! I'm supposed to... I'm going to get into trouble."

"When you are ready to speak to me tell my guard."

Mara turned and looked at the blonde haired young woman who had been sitting by the door listening in on entire conversation. This was bad. REALLY bad. Mara was stuck there and this time she didn't know if she could get ever back to the Imperial Palace. What would happen if she didn't get back to the Emperor soon? Would the Emperor kick her out if she didn't show up for his Emperor's hand test tomorrow? Mara really hoped she wouldn't be there long and that Vader would come to rescue her.


End file.
